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Hamburg coach: Wood red card ‘inexcusable’

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Bobby Wood is Hamburg’s only goalscoring threat, but the U.S. Men’s National Team forward has drawn the ire of his club coach following a dismissal over the weekend.

Wood was issued a red card in Hamburg’s 3-0 loss to Cologne on Sunday, reducing the Bundesliga side to 10 men in the 58th minute. While jockeying for position on a corner kick, Wood elbowed defender Dominique Heintz in the stomach, prompting referee Benjamin Brand to consult with his linesman before issuing a straight red card.

Just three minutes later, Cologne was in front thanks to a goal from Anthony Modeste, who scored two more in the 82nd and 86th minute to seal a resounding win.

Following the loss, Hamburg manager Markus Gisdol said he feels “extremely bitter” while revealing his frustrations with Wood’s dismissal.

“Such a red card is inexcusable,” Gisdol said. “I am not interested if something happened before that. You should not pick up a red card there. We just can’t accept it.”

Wood has scored both of Hamburg’s league goals this season, as the club has picked up just two points from nine matches. Following Sunday’s loss, Hamburg sits last in the Bundesliga with the worst scoring record through nine games in Bundesliga history.

Comments

  1. Should never have been a card. Stuff like that happens all the time, and the refs rightly let it go. Not sure what the assistant ref thought he saw that was worthy of anything. At least give the faker a yellow. The embellishment has to stop. If you reward the faking by giving out reds, then there’ll be more faking.

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    • That’s why I say use video review. Send the individual to the 4th official while a video review is done, if its confirmed he’s sent off (usually right behind the bench in Europe anyway) if not then he is allowed back in at the next stoppage. You might lose a player for a minute or two, but the game wouldn’t need to be slowed at all. The referee headsets can be connected to the video official so that everyone is clear what the call was. With today’s video technology its a no brainer.

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    • Two totally different bodies making those judgments. Its really more a case of will the suspension be extended to multiple games. Not sure the Bundesliga even rescinds red cards as MLS does.

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      • well he was right and they in fact, suspended Wood 3 games. no more arguments about what a group will or will not do. it’s futile.

    • I guess by ‘they’ I mean any governing body in soccer international or domestic. Is there really that much of a differenc, Brohiems?

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      • Well the Bundesliga would be generally seen as more impartial than CONCACAF, and MLS overturns more red cards than anybody, so I think it does make a difference who the “they” is, but I was just clarifying in case some people thought it was some sort of FIFA body that handle it.

  2. There was pretty clearly no movement of Wood’s arm forward and then back like would have been the case had he used excessive force. The action was more typical of the continuous jockeying for position that occurs all over the field.

    Poor judgement on the officials’ parts.

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  3. You all need to stop whining so much
    He threw an elbow and he got red-carded. just like it’s supposed to be.
    This site has turned into the lamest circle jerk ever.

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    • I agree.

      We are whiny, weak conversationalists, and far below your illustrious cognitive and linguistic level.

      You should leave, and find better people to troll…err, converse with.

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    • It was an “elbow” into the stomach not a shot to the head, its not a red card, there are 4 or 5 of those “thrown” every corner kick or free kick near the area. Those are seldom whistled and almost never receive a yellow let alone red. If he had hit him anywhere above the shoulders yes obvious red. Heintz hits him with his elbow as well, the only difference is Wood doesn’t throw himself to the ground.

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  4. I like it.

    Obviously you have to try and keep your head, and remember it ultimately hurts the team. But, every now and again? I’ll take that kind of attitude over passive & non-confrontational mentalities far too many of our players display and not surprisingly is reflected in their play.

    I’m absolutely fine with that Clint Dempsey attitude for all the positives it brings, too.

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      • Well if you want Bobby to be more like Dempsey maybe he shouldn’t get dumb cards?

        I’m not sure how more plainly I could have put it to point out I was referencing his attitude. There, I’ve used bold print to assist you.

        Read the post next time before you respond to it to ensure you’re not confused. I’m not here to hold your hand.

  5. This article is poorly written. “While jockeying for position on a corner kick…” Give me a break. It should say “In response to an intentional shoulder charge received in the back from a defender who instigated the contact…”

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  6. No elbow would mean no flop. He took the bait and reacted to it, it’s all part of the maturation process.Hopefully he’s allowed to learn from it and move on.

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  7. Yeah, that should be overturned. What a joke of a red card. I guess this means Bobby isn’t playing again before Mexico. Hopefully this doesn’t derail his season for more than a few games.

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  8. I agree it was a pathetic flop but when is Bobby going to stop getting baited into this stuff is what I want to know. It happened in the Copa as well.

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  9. Maybe Gisdol should be spending his time trying to figure out how to get Wood the ball in more dangerous areas, the midfield of hamburg looks really poor/disjointed.

    Also, thought a yellow would have been fine there. It was a stupid elbow but pretty restrained in force, defender made the most of it.

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  10. Seriously, a man who is 6’2 and 190 pounds isn’t going to go down from bump with an elbow. Rewarding actors like this has to stop. If you are going to allow an AR 50 yards away to basically call a red card, you have to either add a second referee or video review. Because now your telling a striker if you got bumped at all in the back fall flailing to the ground as if you’ve been stabbed, because then Hamburg would have played the final 30 minutes up a man. If you have a guy up in the booth who can watch this you see they are both at fault give them both yellows and move on with a fair match.

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    • Seen this done many times in amateur or youth soccer, with more force, and to great effect (it’ll stop a defender’s nagging, talking, instigating). Just do it when the ref isn’t looking – exactly what Wood did.. I agree with you little shoves and punches that are clearly part of a personal 90 min. battle should remain part of the game. I was always taught to go out and win my individual battles on the pitch, somehow. Hopefully this doesn’t discourage him from doing it again, albeit with even more discretion. We are in 2016 and of course, if it is red card-able by the rules, and knowing that one of the 20 cameras in the stadium will catch it, the receiver of the hit will go down every… single… time. Sport has changed. Maybe its purest form exists only where it lacks over-scrutinizing, over-analyzing, or even an audience altogether.

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    • Whether it was deserved or not, you don’t do something like that in plain sight and give your opponent and the referee an excuse to punish you. We have seen this before from Wood in internationals. It’s stupid and he needs to be more careful. The defender was pushing him, but the best way to retaliate would have been to score a goal.

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    • I agree. That was incredibly weak and was blatant simulation, and it would never survive serious scrutiny on a video review.

      So much for the notion that Latin players are the world’s primo divers and the Bundesliga is a steel-jawed Real Man’s League; that was a flop that would have made even Arjen Robben wince.

      Bobby’s got to be more careful, I guess, but that was a little reflex elbow-jab, hardly vicious, and hard to not do when a dude is climbing all over your back…and when guys are simulating like that in a transparent attempt to get their opponent tossed out of the game, the game needs to do a better job of spotting simulation, and punishing it. Instead of a red for Wood, that should have been a yellow for the flopper. Here’s where instant replay would take a heckuva lotta the garbage out of the game.

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    • The most ridiculous part of this whole situation is the coach throwing Wood under the bus. Look at the replay and stand up for your player, who also happens to be the only semi-reliable scorer on your squad. So I’m more annoyed with the coach than the ref.

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